Texas Rangers Blog

MLB Network hopes to be Rangers viewers’ national option

If you are part of the increasing number of viewers watching Rangers games on cable’s Fox Sports Southwest or caught the three ESPN broadcasts, you should also have access to MLB Network.

The fledgling network, which covers everything major league, offers a perfect complement to Rangers games. In only it’s fourth season, it has surpassed other league-owned networks in style and substance.

Its peers have noticed. MLB Tonight, the network’s signature show, has won back-to-back Emmys for best daily studio show.

This season, the Rangers have rivaled the stalwart Yankees and Red Sox in coverage. Of course, when you have Josh Hamilton and Yu Darvish, networks notice.

MLBN is in 69 million homes around the country. It has accomplished something in Dallas-Fort Worth that neither NFL Network nor Longhorn Network has been able to do. It has carriage on Time Warner.

Not to count AL West crowns before they are won on the field but should the Rangers possibly, maybe win the division for the third consecutive season, MLBN, for the first time, will broadcast two division series games.

Veteran television executive Tony Petitti is the network’s president and chief executive officer. Petitti, a Harvard Law School grad, previously touched the bases at CBS, NBC and ABC.
Here’s a quick question and answer session.

HA: What does MLBN offer Rangers fans?

TP: If MLBN can be a second home for the Rangers in their market that would be great. We can offer more coverage of the teams that the Rangers are competing with than anyone. Our analysts can also offer a national perspective that looks at what is going on with Texas. Fans always like to hear what people outside the home market are saying.

HA: Your roster of analysts isn’t made up of Hall of Famers. You seem to have gone with ex-players with lesser names – the Dan Plesacs, Al Leiters and Kevin Millars -instead of stars. Billy Ripken works for you, Cal Ripken works for Turner. Why did you go this route?

TP: The bottom line is fans can figure out if they like the presentation. We have to bring it everyday. It’s not about the press conference you have when you hire analysts. It’s about what they can do every day to make the shows informative and entertaining. Baseball never stops. We wanted people who would always be welcome in viewers’ homes.

HA: What’s the best thing MLBN does?

TP: In addition to the studio shows, we offer live look-ins every night. It’s like we do March Madness every night.

HA: Why the need then this season to launch a second network, MLB Network Strike Zone?

TP: There is no studio chatter. It’s games played on Tuesday and Friday nights. It’s commercial free and offers continuous look-ins. It goes from game to game. It is the same idea as the NFL’s Red Zone.

HA: What’s next?

TP: I’d like to us to have more games. Maybe we can have an exclusive night when we are the only ones broadcasting a game. We’re just getting started.